5 Benefits of Hosting Blogger Events

by Business Case Studies on Wednesday 1st March, 2017

Online brands will always fight an uphill battle against those that have high street space and a strong offline presence. While websites can obviously display detailed product information and user reviews, nothing beats the simple appeal of seeing other people using and endorsing a product. This is particularly important for fashion brands, which can experience a boost in brand awareness if blogging and social media are utilised correctly.

Instagram is a booming platform of influencers that can promote brands to millions of followers with a single photo, and fashion bloggers are becoming more adept at marketing themselves as a brand across multiple channels. Therefore, it can be extremely lucrative to establish and nurture relationships between your brand and the bloggers that can help promote it. Building these relationships takes time, though any brand can start by hosting a blogger event that introduces themselves and their products.

Here are five ways blogger events can help promote your brand:

1. Offline visibility

With no store to entice customers and let them try on new styles, a blogger event gives a fashion brand a physical presence for people to actively engage with products. Events are typically organised around a specific product range or promotion, forming a theme that runs throughout the event’s aesthetics and activities which brings said products to life. For example, a cocktail-making event can be used to support the promotion of evening dresses.

2. Brand ambassadors

Customers are the best brand ambassadors you can have as they market your brand in the most natural way possible: by using your products in their everyday life and encouraging others to do the same. When you consider this against the potentially huge online readership that bloggers can possess, hosting them for an event becomes an opportunity for your brand to appear in front of thousands of people. And, by meeting with them face to face, you can nurture personal relationships with bloggers and potentially work with them again after your event, which means getting off on the right foot is imperative.

3. Authentic marketing

Advertisements do their best to sound realistic and exciting, but customers always know the difference between an advert promoting a product and the legitimate enthusiasm of someone who uses it. With an event, you can let bloggers physically try out the products you want to promote, meaning their posts and comments are genuine and based on real experiences. Bloggers take pride in their work and want to give their readers the best content possible, meaning every positive endorsement from a blogger is a new glowing review that other people can read.

4. Social media impact

The wealth of social platforms available can be both a blessing and a curse for small businesses. While the likes of Facebook and Twitter allow brands to communicate directly with customers, it can often be difficult to rise above the noise made by larger brands who have already built impressive audiences. Hosting a blogger event means a business of any size can connect with individuals who have built their followings into the thousands or even millions. A brand promoted by powerful social influencers is exposed to a potentially huge audience, which can significantly boost impressions, site visits and, ultimately, conversions.

5. Massive return on investment

Bloggers are always looking to build their online profile by working and building lasting relationships with brands. While there are many aspects to consider while planning an event – including the venue, catering options, and any professional help you may need to hire – how you present your brand’s identity should always be at the forefront of your mind. If you consider your audience carefully and craft an event around aspects that they enjoy about your brand, you’ll find blogger events don’t require a large budget to be effective.

Raising your brand’s online awareness is all about connecting with your customers. With companies of all sizes competing for attention online, blogger events can really bring a personal touch to the way you engage with your audience. They can also give an online brand a real-world physicality that is essential when competing with high-street stores and being at the forefront of a customer’s mind the next time they look to make a purchase.

Written by Kirsty Rockliff, Online Campaign Manager for fashion retailer bonprix, part of Freeman Grattan Holdings. With over six years of marketing experience, Kirsty manages and co-ordinates strategies to help bonprix grow in the world of fashion online.